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They have a standoff, eyeing each other down before Anne finally retracts her hand

I can still feel her hand on low, but it doesn’t faze me

“She deserved that And plentythe tears

She’s right I do

I’m broken Shattered into a million bits That’s how I feel

And no a my body here in this hospital bed will fix the destroyed remains of the hearts inside this room

I killed him

I killed Liam

I drove that car straight into the storm

Straight into the water …

Tears well up indown my cheeks

“Is he really dead?” I mutter

“You tell lare “Because they can’t fucking find my son’s body”

“And now they’ve declared him dead,” his mother adds, unable to keep the tears at bay

Oh, God

He’s really gone

Down there in the deep, all alone

And he begged o back

I bury my face in my hands “I’m sorry,” I mutter “I’m so sorry”

“You should be,” Luca spits “You killed my brother”

I wishthat I could take it back

That I could’ve stoppedcontrol over the car “I didn’t mean for it to happen”

“But it did,” Lex replies, his anger taking over his grief

“I will never haveaway the tears with the fury of a scorned woman

Lex throws my father a look “And someone has to pay the price”

What? Pay the price? How?

I can’t exchangethat I could

He deserved so iven And I took it all away from him

“You will hear fro, Lex and Anne De Vos leave the room

Only Luca re me down from the doorway, the spot he hasn’t left since the second he stepped in

“I told you, you shouldn’t have run away from me,” he says

Through the tears, I scream, “Get out!”

“Jill!” my mother scoffs at me

But I pay her no attention as aze locks with Luca

Because he knows exactly why all of this happened

Why I dragged Liain with

To escape him

“Hope the hospital takes good care of you,” Luca says, licking his lips as he turns around to walk out the door But not without a final glance … and a warning “You’re gonna need it”